Last Breath w/ Directors Richard da Costa and Alex Parksinson

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Director Richard da Costa

Last Breath is a 2019 documentary film directed by Richard da Costa and Alex Parkinson. It relates the story of a serious saturation diving accident in 2012, when diver Chris Lemons had his umbilical cable severed and became trapped around 100 metres under the sea without heat or light, and with only the small amount of breathing gas in his backup tank.

Director Alex Parkinson

The documentary uses genuine footage and audio recorded at the time of the accident on the divers' radios and body cameras, supplemented with interviews of several of the individuals involved, as well as some reconstructed footage, to tell the story of the accident.

Moving Pictures with An Tran

www.antranland.com

@tranland

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Director/Producer An Tran’s feature documentary debut Moving Pictures: Filmmakers and the Art of Cinematography premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam earlier this year. Including insights from award-winning directors Ang Lee, Francis Ford Coppola, Wim Wenders, Reed Morano and Ellen Kuras, this documentary takes viewers on a rare journey exploring the artists behind the world’s cinematic treasures.

Moving Pictures includes intimate conversations with celebrated cinematographers like Roger Deakins ASC BSC, Vittorio Storaro ASC AIC, Rachel Morrison ASC, Christopher Doyle HKSC, Rodrigo Prieto ASC AMC, Matthew Libatique ASC, Mahmoud Kalari and more. These passionate craftspeople reveal their early influences and careers, what moves and motivates them, plus the magic of legendary partnerships with directors such as Jim Jarmusch, Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese, Bernardo Bertolucci, David Lynch, Abbas Kirostami, Xia Fang, Stanley Kubrick and more.

Produced by ARRI, the documentary was a major undertaking – production spanned multiple continents, crews and languages. Joining the effort were also Director/Executive producer Henning Radlein and Director/Supervising Editor Sophie Kill. Cinematographer Tom Fahrmann, bvk developed the black-and-white visual design and lighting approach for the interviews.

For Tran, her goal was to bring out the personality of each interview subject, along with showcasing a diverse array of filmmakers from different backgrounds and generations. “We know these filmmakers and work; being able to share their unique experiences will inspire current film lovers and the storytellers of tomorrow.

Wim Wenders

Rachel Morrison

An Tran and Check Varese

Vittorio Storaro

Reed Moreno

Matthew Libatique

IT: Chapter Two & The 33 w/ Checco Varese

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Checco Varese, ASC lensed It: Chapter Two for director Andy Muschietti, the highly anticipated sequel to 2017’s box office success, hitting theaters September 6, 2019. For Muschietti, who stepped back into the director’s role, tapping veteran cinematographer Checco Varese to shoot the sequel was a natural choice.

 “Checco and I go back a long time. We made commercials together a decade ago in Spain, as well as a little short film, and a pilot, too. Our communication has always been great, not only because of the shorthand coming from our cultural background and language, (I was born and raised in Argentina, while he is Peruvian but lived in Buenos Aires for years) but also because we speak a similar visual language. Just a few words were enough to express my vision of this film to him, and immediately an effervescent creative dialogue began. For a cinematographer, working with a director who is very visual can be a blessing or a curse. That’s why Checco is such a trooper. His patience is monumental, and his support unconditional,” compliments the director.

Previously, Checco shot several episodes of the first season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan for Amazon with John Krasinski starring in the titular role; the pilot for Fox’s legal drama Proven Innocent; and director Jeffrey Nachmanoff’s sci-fi thriller, Replicas, featuring Keanu Reeves and Thomas Middleditch. Working with his longtime collaborator,director Patricia Riggen, Varese lensed Miracles From Heaven, as well as Riggen’s The 33, based on the extraordinary real-life story of 33 miners trapped in a Chilean mine.His other feature credits include Riggen’s Girl in Progress, and second unit on Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim. Thanks to his prolific body of work, Varese has established a reputation as the unofficial‘pilot guy.’ He has lensed nearly two dozen season starters which, more often than not, go on to be picked up to series: FX’s The Strain; A&E’s The Returned; ABC Family’s The Fosters; Melrose Place for the CW; and The Defenders for CBS. And who can forget the True Blood pilot? This iconic series went on for seven seasons

Checco and Director Patricia Riggen on the set of The 33

In the mid-90s, Varese established himself as a leading director of photography,shooting hundreds of music videos, including Dave Matthew's Band's "Crash" and Prince's "Black Sweat," for which he was nominated for Best Cinematography at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. Born in Peru, Varese began his career in the mid-1980's, spending nearly a decade shooting news coverage and documentaries in major zones of conflict: Latin America(Chiapas Uprising, Salvador and Nicaragua Wars, Panama Invasion, Colombia Drug War, Shining Path, Chile's Military Junta); The Caribbean (Haiti Crisis); Europe (Bosnia Crisis, Chechnya Crisis); the Middle East (Gulf War, West Bank and Gaza Strip Crisis)and Africa (South African Riots and the Rwanda Crisis). Varese speaks six languages, lives in Los Angeles and is represented by DDA.

Costume Design with Antoinette Messam

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Antoinette Messam has built an enviable career for herself in film and television. Her costumes can be seen in the Netflix original, Hold the Dark for director Jeremy Saulnier, starring Alexander Skarsgård, Riley Keogh and Jeffrey Wright, which premiered at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival. For her work on the film she received a Canadian Alliance of Film & Television Costume Arts & Design (CAFTCAD) award for Best Costume Design in Contemporary Film.

She recently wrapped another Netflix original film, All Day and A Night for director Joe Robert Cole. Previously, she designed on the remake of SuperFly for Director X. Her work is also on view in 1 Night , starring Anna Camp, Justin Chatwin, Isabelle Fuhrman and Kyle Allen; Colossal , starring Anne Hathaway and Jason Sudeikis; and the award-winning Creed for director Ryan Coogler, co-starring Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone.

For television, Messam’s work includes the first season of the critically acclaimed hit series Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency , for producers Robert Cooper, David Alpert and Kim Todd,and the popular drama series The Divide , for creators Tony Goldwyn and Richard LaGravenese.

The World of Underwater Cinematography With Ian Seabrook

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On the set of Deadpool 2

Underwater director of photography Ian Seabrook’s trailblazing work complements and enhances a story’s imagery to create cutting-edge visuals.

Seabrook recently completed underwater unit photography on M. Night Shyamalan’s Glass; director Albert Hughes’ survival drama Alpha; and the pilot for TNT’s Snowpiercer. His previous underwater photography includes Deadpool 2 for director David Leitch; Jason Reitman’s motherhood comedy Tully, starring Charlize Theron; Walt Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dean Men Tell No Tales; and director Dean Israelite’s Power Rangers starring Elizabeth Banks and Bryan Cranston.

His other feature credits include underwater unit contributions to: The Shack for director Stuart Hazeldine, a dramatic tale of one man’s spiritual journey starring Sam Worthington and Octavia Spencer; Paramount’s Monster Trucks for director Chris Wedge; Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice for director Zack Snyder; and director Kelly Fremon Craig’s The Edge of Seventeen.

In addition to his feature work, Seabrook has also shot underwater for various episodes of television including: the CW’s Arrow, A&E’s Bates Motel, J.J. Abrams’ Fringe, and Warner Brothers’ Smallville. His commercial work includes spots for: Jaguar, Kellogg’s, Bud Lite and Land Rover.

Growing up, Seabrook watched The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau, giving him his first glimpse into the captivating world of underwater photography. Without the benefit of a formal training program, Seabrook taught himself, working consistently to amass an impressive body of work – lensed all over the world. He enjoys the creative and technical challenges each new story brings, as well as the unexpected joys, like the time a pack of dolphins joined him while shooting in the Bahamas.

Seabrook is a member of IATSE Local 600, 669 and 667. He is represented by DDA.